I Don't Do Mornings

Jackson helping take care of Grayson. 

Jack's List

Jack saw Daddy writing a list of things needed from the store and he decided to make his own list.

For the readers that may not quite understand a six year old's spelling (and thought process), here is a translation of sorts...

*Earplugs (to block the "annoying" crying of the baby)

*Pencils (school is coming up)

*Balloons, Party Hats, and Cake (well, why not?!)

*Pizza (a kids gotta eat!)

Blog for the Newbie

Jackson would like to direct your attention to the following blog

http://littlebrothergray.blogspot.com/

This new blog will follow Jack's little brother as he grows from sweet baby into (hopefully) an adorable boy!

The addition of another blog will also challenge Daddy's ability to keep everything up to date!

Biker Boy

Jack has shown a strong interest in riding his bicycle lately. Not sure if it is because Daddy began riding his bike recently, or if Jack is finally over his fright of his two wheeler. (You see, there was a traumatic event a year or so ago where the bike tried to eat him. Or so he says...)

 Here's our super Biker Boy charging hard!

 "Jack, watch where you are going..."

 "What? What did you say?"

"You need to watch where you are....."

 "Oh. Okay!"

"That was fun! I'm going to do it again!"

BrickFair 2012

Jackson and Daddy visited BrickFair on Saturday. The event is an annual gathering that gives AFOLs (Adult Friends Of Lego) and other Lego fans the opportunity to show off what they have created out of Lego building pieces. This year was the first year that Jack or Daddy have been to BrickFair and we didn't know what to expect. After waiting in a very long line, we entered the Expo center. There were thousands of Lego creations on display! There were a few builds that were 'stock' Lego kits, but most of the builds were MOCs - My Own Creation. There were some very creative pieces along with a bunch of models that were just fun to look at.

 Hot Rod Tractor

 Steamer - complete with smoke coming out of the stack

 Coast Guard Helo with rotor wash

 This one had a bit of humor for the adults - these two minifigures enjoyed too much to drink while building this shed....

 Spiderman makes an appearance

 One of Daddy's favorites.

 A Porsche built out of Technics. There is no official Porsche kit from Lego, this builder did a pretty good job creating the body lines.

 Some of these builds have great details!

 A-10 Warthog. Sweet!

 Several other military aircraft. Again, these don't have kits, these guys just did an awesome job building these planes!

 An AFOL. 

(Inspires Daddy to new levels of facial hair)

 If you are going to model commerce, these are two fine companies to use!

 Here Jack uses a controller pad to direct the robotics Lego to shoot a ball into the diorama and attempt to knock down one of the 'villains'.

 This ship rocked! Despite it's large size it still displayed a large amount of detail.

 Small and simple. Again, no kit. 

 This is just a small sample of a very large farm land build.

 Both this carousel and the Ferris Wheel (to the left) were powered to turn.

 Another model of a combine. Farming was popular this year.

Chillin'...

Rockin' and Rollin'(or Geezin' and Wheezin'!)

I just started riding my bike.

Things are not how they used to be. I used to be able to ride a twenty mile loop daily with no ill effects. Now  I can barely make it three miles without my legs threatening to detach themselves from the rest of my body. I used to be able to scream down hills with precision control. Now I wobble along the smallest decline hoping the bike misses nearby trees. I used to manage steering and pedaling while gracefully raising a water bottle to my lips for a drink of water. Now I have to stop, dismount, and use both hands to prevent showering myself with water when attempting to quench my thirst.

So while things are quite different now than they used to be, I am excited to be outside getting a workout. The first day I wrestled the bicycle through a torturous six miles. The second day I squeezed in a three mile singletrack loop. Today I revisited the three mile loop and noticed that while my legs still ached on the hills, I rode the trail with a bit less difficulty as before. I am determined to keep at this biking thing and be able to regain some of my former ability to rock and roll!

The Rabbit and the Hare

"The world went and got itself in a big damn hurry"

-Brooks Hatlen in The Shawshank Redemption

I keep finding myself amazed at people who seem to always be in a rush. Not a day goes by I don't see someone driving like a madman to get somewhere. My entertainment in heavy traffic is to spot the person that is driving crazily because they JUST HAVE TO GET THERE NOW!  The afternoon trip home today certainly did not disappoint me - sure enough, there was a gentleman in a Saab 9/3 that drew my attention. This driver (hereafter to be referred to simply as "The Saab" both because it refers to the model of car being driven and because The Saab sounds quite like S.O.B.) most certainly had to be late for a meeting with the President. Or maybe he had a scantily clothed super model waiting for him at home. Most likely he was just a moron. The Saab first caught my eye as it entered the stop and go traffic. The Saab did so by pulling out of a side street with a perfectly executed, 30mph rolling stop.(I guess stop signs don't apply to morons.) Once The Saab was comfortably nestled behind me in the long line of stalled traffic, the The Saab began to hunt for a way around me. Three lanes of stopped cars and I'm the one that's holding up this Saab!

The Saab could find no opening in the traffic to get around me. So The Saab did what any rational person would do in the situation. He honked and threw his hands in the air in disgust. Oh! Thank you! Honking at the 130 cars in front of you will solve the traffic problem! We all were unaware that we could simply move forward whenever we wanted! Thank you for pointing out the simple solution!

The Saab fumed and honked a bit more until traffic began to slowly creep ahead. Once cars had moved several feet ahead The Saab whipped to the left and sped around me. Only to brake to a hard stop forty feet later. This dance of The Saab lasted another five minutes as the traffic lights cycled several times. I kept track of The Saab as we crept along - he made 15 lane changes and just as many hard starts and stops. One mile later The Saab, after all of his lane changes, starts, stops, and frustration, ended up one full car length in front of me. As I entered the turn lane to head away from traffic towards the house, I caught the eyes of The Saab in his rearview mirror. I sweetly waved at the driver -who promptly pointed out that I really was Number 1- and then I eased on down the road.

Some people are wound way too tight. No need to be frustrated by things you have no control over. You live in Washington, D.C.. Land of crowded streets and horrible vehicle congestion. 

Relax.